Who is having withdraws?

[Jim5569]

Having lived in Connecticut for 4 years and remembering that summer is defined in New England as "Memeorial Day to Labor Day" I sympathise with those of you having withdrawl pains of not being able to sail right now. We sailers in southeast Texas (Galveston Bay) are enjoying a 69F, bright sunshiny day with winds of 10 to 12 kts (a not untypical winter day for us). We are able to leave our boats in the water all year and sail year round. The solution for you is obvious, move on down (or at least come visit). See you on the water.

Jim LeBlanc
2 Thumbs Up, S2 9.2A
Houston

 

[Bad Obsession]

Got the cockpit table sanded to bare wood. Since it is covered most of the time I am going to varnish it with nice varnish and at least 6 coats! I have a coat on it (took it off the boat and took it apart). This is just the beginning.

 

[newly anonymous]

yes, it's awful!

So much rain last weekend we didn't take the boat out, which means when we sail tomorrow it will have been 13 days since the last entry in the log book.

Winter is cruel here in Sausalito.

 

[Dick Dixon]

Maybe I shouldn't post this but last weekend we went Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. And oh, we are going tomorrow.

Maybe I should shut up.

 

[Bad Obsession]

You guys in the south kind of rob peter to pay paul. Yes, it is nice earlier on or all winter, but in July and August is is so hot down there it is miserable.

It is 14 degrees outside when I woke up this morning. Going to do more work on the cockpit table soon.

 

[Stu Jackson]

I think it's just rude

for year round sailors to remind our brethren in colder climes. They already know that.

 

[Bad Obsession]

Stu...I agree with you on that one. Oh well, when they are having LOW temps in the 90's we will remind them what it is like to have lows in the 70's and nice winds

 

[sailingdog]

I agree... very rude...

for year round sailors to remind our brethren in colder climes. They already know that.

 

[Ross]

Take note of how much time and effort those gulf coast sailors spend talking about air conditioners. I spent ten years on the gulf coast one summer and I won't go back there between the first of May and the end of September.

 

[caguy]

Who is having withdrawals?

Here in So Calif where the weather is nearly perfect all year around I was empathizing with you guys. I'm only locked out from my boat for a month and I'm going nuts. I don't see how you do it for 6 months. I should have brought it home and put it in the driveway where it would drive my wife nuttier.
I don't know if it is a case of the grass is greener but your eastern coast line looks more interesting than ours. Do you ever get tired of sailing the same scenery? Can't wait to get back to some 4 day weekend trips.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Here in So Calif ...Do you ever get tired of sailing the same scenery? Can't wait to get back to some 4 day weekend trips.

We feel kinda limited here in San Francisco because we have The Bay but not too much out in the ocean: The Farrallone Islands are 25 miles out, too much for a casual daysail, plus it takes two hours to get out of the mouth of the Golden Gate. There's Half Moon Bay, a good 18 miles south and Drake's Bay, 34 miles north, after the 2 miles out the Gate. We do have the Delta and two rivers, the Petaluma and Napa. The Delta's great for gunkholing, not such great sailing unless it's downwind, and the two rivers are so polluted by now (weren't so bad 15 years ago) that we get the "brown bow mustache" every time we enter them, and I wouldn't swim in them anymore.

You So. Cal guys have the Channel Islands and Catalina, but it's out and back every day for day sails. That's a straight turnaround of your "Do you ever get tired of sailing the same scenery?" I'd ask YOU that. :naughty: And I've heard from some who are quite tired of the same old, same old. Heck, though, but at least we're on our boats, right?

Saying all that, in answer to your "tired of" quote: have you ever looked at a Chesapeake Bay guide book? Or the LI Sound, or Maine? Geez, they only have six months, but what glorious places to go and see.

If the Panama Canal were a bit closer, I'd go East every weekend.

 

[Bad Obsession]

The Chesapeake Bay is an amazing place. There are all sorts of towns to visit and it is neat to see all of the different places. I consider myself blessed to have been cruising that area most of my life. Solomins Island, Tangier Island, Smith Island, Hampton, Annapolis, Kiptopeak, Deltaville, and there are so many other amazing places to go.

 

[MoonSailer]

The gulf coast is great all summmer when you are on the water. The problem is sitting at the dock. Out on the hook with a wind scoop the boat swings to keep the air flowing. Afternoon and evening storms can be a problem. But summer nights with a nice breeze blowing off the water is great. Heck sometimes I even put on a sweatshirt as it feels a little too cool later on in the evening. Sure beats pulling the boat out for half the year!!!!

 

[Ken Honeycutt]

Don't know which is worst up here in Chicago. Counting the days before you can put her back in, or counting the days before you have to take her back out.It's painful to think about either way.

 

[Larry Neese]

No withdrawls down here in the Conch Republic, we have ours during the long summer, we go out to the reef, tie up and go diving, then boat drnks and we motor back home,
did work on the boat this week getting ready my favorite time to sail..March-April

 

[Scott T-Bird]

My tale of woe ...

Our boat has been on stands so long this winter that I can't even get the dog to perk up her ears anymore when I say the word "boat" to get her excited! She isn't buying it anymore. We had to pull her out early in September for the lake drawdown that they do every 6 years so that people can do their dock maintance. They won't let the water rise again until the ice is gone (to avoid ice damage as the water rises) and this has been a cold winter so I don't expect the ice to be gone until late March at the earliest or even April! I think we will be lucky to have the boat in the water by early May.

This has been a long layover and I think one more season on Lake Hopatcong will suffice and then we will move to the Hudson River for a change in scenery and some expanded sailing options. The convenience of being close to the boat and friends on the lake is hard to give up but I would make the move anytime now.

 

[rfoust]

I am starting to get sailing withdraws. It has been a long off season and I have started to do very small projects on my boat. I am looking forward to warm weather and good sailing.

Anyone else getting antsy?

Yes I am also. New sailor and want to get back out!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Bob S]

Another Anchoring Question.

I have a few questions about anchoring. I have a Mason Supreme with 20’ of 5/16 chain and 250’ of ½ nylon. My spare, which came with the boat, is an oversize Danforth with 6’ of plastic coated chain. I have no rope for that anchor. I plan on buying a ½ pail (90’) of new chain and another 250’ of rope to use on the Mason Supreme and use the old rodes for the Danforth. For the last year I’ve enjoyed and learned a lot about anchoring from this site. I actually decided to buy the Mason Supreme from reading many posts. Mainsail, you should be getting commissions! How many of us bought Ronca’s, Mason Supreme’s or Makita Buffers after readings from Mainsail?

Maybe I can get a few answers to the following:

• With 90’ of chain, there will be a few locations that are shallow enough that I will be using all chain. Sounds stupid but how do you cleat it?
• I’ve also read about shock absorbers. How would you add one to the chain and where would you buy it?
• How do you determine when to use a stern anchor verses using a second bow anchor or just one anchor? I’ve read how to deploy two bow anchors but not much on how to set a stern anchor. I might be prone to using the dinghy to set a stern in a crowded anchorage.
• What happens when you have a stern anchor and the wind shifts 180°?

Around here, you can’t find an anchorage that isn’t crowded. I’m sure it’s no different anywhere else (except for maybe Cuba, I loved that thread). Last summer, I was inside Cutttyhunk Pond, we got there too late to pick up a mooring so I anchored. It was very crowded. I had to move a few times because of the depths. I didn’t want to wake up on my side. I found a spot about 4-1/2’ at low tide maybe 8’ at high tide. Off my stern on the port side I had two boats rafting using an all chain rodes. I don’t remember seeing a stern anchor but they didn’t swing. Off my stern on the starboard side there was a trimaran. She didn’t swing either. The winds where steady out of the SW around 10-15 mph and I was swinging like crazy. I slept (more like rested with one eye open) on the couch looking out the companionway watching both sets of anchor lights all night long. I was afraid of dragging and didn’t have much room if I started.The Mason Supreme held perfectly and we didn't budge although the swinging drove me nuts.

 

[Chuckbear]

bsmith, Some boats just sail at anchor and some don't. It really has nothing to do with the anchor or rode. There are a few ways to deal with this but none will eliminate it altogether. One is to use a bridle, which you ask about. This is two lines about 20 feet long connected together and with a chain hook attached to be hooked onto your chain then run back to a cleat on each side of the bow. This can be done in a couple of different ways. The next way is to rig up a riding sail off your backstay to keep you into the wind. Another is to attach a block just above the waterline below the anchor roller with a snubber connected to it and the anchor rode. On a few boats just dropping an anchor off the stern and letting it drag will slow it down. You will have to experiment and find out what others are doing with boats like yours.

 

[Bob S]

Thanks Chuckbear. This was posted here in error. i moved it to a new post which it should have been.